Staging Shakespearean Play: A Comparative Study of Past and Present (Published)
This paper aims at illustrating the difficulties and differences of staging Shakespearean drama then and now. While writing this paper strictly keeping in mind the facts that Shakespearean plays were written for the sixteenth century audience, based on the historical and cultural background of Shakespeare’s time. There are multiple differences and difficulties the actors faced and are facing both then and now. Firstly, the stage of Shakespearean time was different from now; it had both the advantages and disadvantages of technicality. Shakespearean stage was open from all sides and the entry and exit of the stage was visible for everyone whereas the contemporary stage is one side open and three sides closed, making the postures and actions for the players difficult keeping in mind that they need to mostly face the audience. On one hand the contemporary players face the complications of staging the language, culture and behavior of the sixteenth century English folks, on the other hand the actors of Shakespearean time found it difficult to entertain the audience because of lack of female actors which was prohibited during the time of Shakespeare, for example in Twelfth Night, the role of Viola was played by a male actor playing a female character who was disguised as a male creating farce and complications. Staging Shakespeare in the contemporary times has proved to be quite difficult as there are multiple modes of entertainment, also the audience is difficult to please due to the well-known plots being used and reused in different versions of adaptations of Shakespearean dramas on stage, in films and television soaps. There is an alienating effect for the contemporary audience as the chorus, music, language, costume and props constantly remind them of the distance between the generations, therefore making it hard to keep them interested.
Keywords: Actor and Actress, Modern theatre, Shakespeare, Stage